As you know, 2018 marks the 10th anniversary of European Minerals Day and the 3rd for North American Minerals Day. Staff for both IMA-Europe and IMA-NA developed the program as a way to spread awareness of the industrial minerals industry through member hosted events. European Minerals Day takes place in September, a month before the target week of October 8th for North American Minerals Day. We are beginning the process of planning events across Europe and North America. Join us on June 13th at 1:00pm EDT for a webinar to learn about the program and how you and your company can get involved.

This week marks the 2nd Annual North American Minerals Days, a continuation of IMA-NA's partnership with IMA-Europe to broaden awareness of industrial minerals, the industry, and the role our members play in creating and supporting our modern lifestyles. This year, in addition to continuing to partner and support the efforts of Earth Science Week, Kaolin Festival, and the Georgia Marble Festival, IMA-NA members are hosting a variety of events.

Tomorrow, October 12th, KaMin and Imerys will be hosting an all day event highlighting the Kaolin industry and their culture of safety. We'll be welcoming Assistant Secretary of MSHA, Joe Main, to tour a mine and participate in a Safety luncheon with EHS representatives from across the state of Georgia. In addition to Joe Main, Congressman Jody Hice (GA-10) and representatives from the state and local governments will be participating in the activities. The Kaolin event is also being supported by Georgia Mining Association and promises to provide an excellent opportunity for IMA-NA members to interact with their legislators and regulators.

Across the country, in Nevada, Tronox will be hosting Congressman Joe Heck for a tour and discussion. Tronox's event is demonstrative of the type of relationship building opportunities presented during election years. Continuing to tell the story of the positive economic and community impacts of your businesses is especially important at the district and state level, where legislators can interact with your employees and their constituents.

We're pleased by the expansion of the Minerals Days and believe any opportunity to educate individuals, both in government and in our communities, about our industry is productive in continuing to tell the story about the importance of mining in North America.

With summer rapidly approaching an end, we are moving closer to our identified week of North American Minerals Days. In the second year of our initiative, we've identified the week of October 10th as the ideal time to cluster events. As we continue planning events for North American Minerals Days, we will be sharing tools and ideas for member event planning. Taking our cue from the success of European Minerals Day, all associated events will be member driven with different focuses. From open mine days to roundtable discussions with elected officials, these events are geared towards highlighting whatever aspect of your operations you would like to educate the public about.

This afternoon we are sharing information on how to host a successful community event at your habitat. As we work to change the inaccurate public perception that all mining is terrible for the environment, North American Minerals Days is a good opportunity to show off your reclamation projects. Demonstrating the respect and care we, as an industry, have for our environment can go a long way to correcting misconceptions about mining, especially when interacting with younger individuals. Please see the attached presentation from the Wildlife Habitat Council for tips and ideas on how to host a successful community event focused on your habitat.

If you are interested or planning on hosting an event please contact Ariel Hill-Davis for assistance.

December 6th marks the 8th Annual National Miners Day, a day designated by Congress in 2009 to celebrate and honor the contributions and sacrifices of miners both past and present. The day is a time to honor the role miners played and continue to play in building the United States. As we are aware, mining is a vibrant and necessary industry both in the U.S. and across the globe that allows us all to enjoy a higher quality of life. National Miners Day, like North American Minerals Days, is an opportunity to recognize the mining industry and promote greater awareness of the important work miners carry out each and every day. According to MSHA, about 375,000 miners extract coal and nearly 100 different kinds of minerals from the earth, including industrial minerals. IMA-NA is proud to represent the producers of these materials that fuel our industries, comprise our infrastructure, and make up our consumer products.

IMA-NA would like to encourage our members to do something to commemorate and celebrate all the employees that make your companies great. MSHA has developed resources to assist in the staging of any activities for Miners Day, which you can find here. There you can find Miners Day videos, photos, and posters as well as a social media toolkit. If there are individuals or operations you would like to highlight on IMA-NA's website or Facebook page, please contact Ariel Hill-Davis. IMA-NA will be taking this entire week as an opportunity to put the spotlight on some of the exceptional people who make up your organizations and our membership. Additionally, MSHA staffer, Lynn Dondis is supporting events and sharing updates. She can be reached here, if you would like to share information, thoughts, or stories from your operations with her directly.

As IMA-NA and all our members know the Industrial Minerals Industry is unassuming despite having far reaching impacts across the economy. The drive of North American Minerals Days is to promote the understanding that the modern world is made of Industrial Minerals, including highlighting the quantifiable impacts of the industry. Recent studies concluded that in the United States alone the Industrial Minerals Industry directly contributes $33.5 billion the the GDP. When we consider the variety of products and processes our minerals go into the ripple effects of the industry are substantially more. In addition to acting as the building blocks for the products that make our modern lifestyles possible, the Industrial Minerals Industry also supports industries like those found in our Associate Member Section. Our Associate Members provide equipment, services, and expertise that strengthens and further stretches the impact of the industry. North American Minerals Days celebrate the industry's involvement with their communities, as leaders, job creators, and active investors in the future. This recognition can include our Associate Members that help the industry continue producing the minerals we need in the best way possible.

The attached article written by our Associate Member, Kevin Peterson, is a key example of the symbiotic relationship that develops between Producers and the supporting industries. Read the article to learn how Vortex helped a customer figure out a solution to making their process run smoother and more efficiently. It is a demonstration of the wider community and how many people rely on the industry in one way or another to lead their lives.

This week marks the first official North American Minerals Days, an expansion of IMA-Europe's successful European Minerals Day program. Started in 2007, with the goal of increasing awareness of the industrial minerals industry and the role it plays in communities across Europe, European Minerals Day as of 2015 has grown into a global program. IMA-NA partnered with IMA-Europe to promote events to educate and engage with the public about our members and the important work you do. Traditionally, European Minerals Day is held over one week-end, when quarries and plants from the minerals sector all over Europe open their doors to schools, students, families, neighbours and all those interested to discover more about an industry that affects every aspect of our lives. Starting with Omya's Open Quarry Day in September, North American Minerals Days will cover a range of activities held in the fall. Keep an eye out this week for news related to North American Minerals Days and how we can continue to help individuals outside of our industry understand what we do and who we are.

Visit our site for more information on the 1st Annual North American Minerals Days and visit the European Minerals Days to learn about our partners from IMA-Europe.

This weekend Jasper and the Marble Valley of Pickens County will be hosting the 35th annual Georgia Marble Festival. IMA-NA member, Imerys, has long been an active participant and sponsor in the events of the weekend which kicks off this year with the Marble Festival 5k Run/Walk on Saturday morning. The weekend activities include guided tours of marble industry facilities as well as numerous family oriented activities such as arts and crafts, demonstrations, and an ongoing sculptor. The Festival is a great opportunity for the community to come together to learn about and celebrate the role marble and marble producers, like Imerys, play in their lives. IMA-NA is pleased to note our partnership with the Pickens County Chamber of Commerce and the association of the Georgia Marble Festival with North American Minerals Days. The Festival is a great example of what positives can come from community awareness and commemoration of the way the locally sourced minerals impact their lives. We are looking forward to a successful festival this weekend and encourage our members in the area to take advantage of the events.

To learn more about the Festival click here and to learn more about North American Minerals Days click here.